Nacarat, part deux

Nacarat, Fairmont Queen E's bar, is takin' out a new cocktail menu and it is hot of the press! Head mixologist Nader Chabaane worked hard (I know, because I know his wife... BAM!) on a new menu, set up like a tasting wheel: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and my fave, umami! I was SO happy to see that on the menu!

First of all, I love the vibe in that bar: not too fancy, not too serious, but still sophisticated! If I'd have extra money lying around, I'd be there, like, a lot. A LOT. Perhaps worryingly a lot. I say that because the drinks are pricier than at other bars (16-24$), but hey, at other bars, the quality perhaps just ain't there.

And seriously, if you'd hear Nader talk about the way he came up with drinks, or how they make them, or what kind of scientific method goes into it, you'd understand the price of it. And they just look damn good. In another life, if I'm the head notary at the National Bank next door (let's face it, this was my uncle's job--props to Jean, up there), I'd be there every day after work for a nice, and much needed cocktail.

First, I had the Toadka: vermouth, vodka, crème de menthe, sweet peas, wasabi. My eye obviously got caught on the wasabi part. A drink with wasabi in it? Ugh... YA! I was totes excited, nay, ecstatic! Nader explained that for this drink not to actually BE green (I was actually wanting a green drink... but in hindsight, I guess getting a green drink doesn't fit everyone's taste!), they have to... well, I heard the word centrifuge and my mind kind of drifted off. What's important to know is that they go through a lot to make this drink. And this just goes to show you how high end this bar is! I did taste the wasabi, even though I would've loved more in there, and I thought there was a bit too much crème de menthe. Let's face it, I am not a crème de menthe girl. I'm just not. It's ma fault: my eyes got stuck on 'wasabi' and I was like I WANT IT! All in all it was a good drink and I did not regret ordering it, but I would have been coo coo with less crème de menthe and more of the waaasss!

Second drink I had was the Nacarat Is The New Black: midori, mescal, citrus, orange bitter and squid ink to make it black (SO awesome!) I mean, how cool does this sound? And how cool does it LOOK? Makes me think of a detective in the 50's! Yes Imma call it 'Detective Nacarat' from now on! I really loved the fact that they used squid ink to turn it black! Who here has seen squid ink on a bar menu, like, ever? No? That's what I thought. They definitely go the extra 8 miles. Btw, I really didn't mean to refer to Eminem's movie here, HAHA! All the flavours were in there! All o' them levels! It was just strong enough and the citrus was lovely! They know how to dose their sh*t at Nacarat. Oh, they know!

Third drink was le Ptit Louis: rhum, Southern Comfort, pineapple, lime, clove and anise on top. The surprise here was the anis. I do NOT like anis. Just like I can't handle fennel. Meh. BUT, surprisingly, this fit and I wasn't totally repulsed haha. It was a tad on the spicy side, which was quite lovely. A good pick!

We also got food. I mean, what is a night at a bar without the food? Well, that doesn't make much sense since usually, I go DRINK at a bar and it's rare that I order food. But... when in Rome, am I right? I absolutely loved everything on this pic! There as also 'Les Chinoiseries' which is not on here: cold soba noodles with shrimp. hello, shrimp. Yes, shrimp. I gotta say that we were all a bit surprised when we had our first bite and it was cold. But you know what, it was still much liked. The salmon tataki + homemade kimchi (YA, I said homemade) was right up ma freaking Asian alley. It was legit one of the best kimchi I've eaten... and I've eaten kimchi before. Believe me you! It was spicy enough, fermented enough, awesome enough! The salmon was also perf cooked/uncooked. It was a bit of a peculiar pairing but it was, let's say it together, right UP my ALLEY! I happily finished it when my girls were like 'girl, there's too much kimchi in there', and I was like 'yo, there's no such thing'. I mean, there WAS, but who gives a sh*t. The duck tacos in chicken skin. Excuse me? What did you WHAAATTT!!! The duck was perfectly cooked, the seasoning was on par and the chicken skin was so effin good! Not fatty at all, surprisingly. Les escargots! I used to HATE snails. Hate them hate them hate them. Of course, like a lot of people that hate them little creatures, I just had never tasted them :p With wild mushrooms and a red wine sauce, there is no way this was going to be bad. Well, it was amazing. It was literally gone in 2.5 seconds. Oh look, there are some escargots... oh wait, look, no more escargots.

The service was worthy of a great bar: quick and efficient. AND, hey, it doesn't hurt that the waitress was dang hot. OK, I do feel a couple harassment cases coming my way but pfff you don't know who/where I am! Alright, I guess you could just look at my bio, damn it! Anyhoot, it was good serv!

And now, les scores!

Booze: 8
Service: 9

And another win for Nacarat! And y'all KNOW I'll be back!